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The IMAGE and LIKENESS of GOD


The Relationship between GOD, JESUS CHRIST and MAN




PART 1 - God, Father, Holy Spirit


 

A. GOD (Not specifically referring to Father, Son or Holy Spirit)

 

      1.   His "Divine Nature" can be seen through what has been created.

Romans 1:20 - God's divine nature [2B-2] can be understood through creation, so people have no excuse for rejecting him.

                                    (a)  Yet we, by nature, suppress the obvious - v. 18.

 

      2.   God cannot be represented by crafted images (man-made objects, such as idols).

Acts 17:29 - The divine being [2B-1] is not like [6A] a crafted image [2B] of silver or gold.

                                    (a)  Other passages show us that no created object (whether or not crafted by people) is to be used to represent him.

 

      3.   Nevertheless, the entire human race chose to abandon God's glory - all the greatness he is and has - and to go after images and created things.

Romans 1:23 - They abandoned the glory of the immortal God and went after images [1A] made to look like [6D] mortal creatures. (They traded the one for the other.)

                                    (a)  We also read elsewhere that any substitute for God - whether a tangible object, an invisible attitude, an activity or set of values, or anything else - is an expression of idolatry. Anything that is given more attention, or that is treated as more important than God, is idolatry. Example: A love for money is a form of idolatry - Colossians 3:5.

 

B. The Father

 

      1.   Nobody has ever seen his appearance or shape.

John 5:37 - You have never seen his form / shape [5A] ...

                                    (a)  This agrees with the many Scripture passages that describe God as invisible and unseen.

                                    (b)  This leaves us with a question: What about all the instances in the Old Testament, in which people did see God? (This would include, among other instances, his appearances as "the angel of Jehovah.") The answer is simple: It wasn't the Father. Well then, who was it? The New Testament would lead us to conclude that it was Jesus. Look at what the apostle John says about the instance in which Isaiah saw God (Isaiah 6): He says that it was Jesus' glory that Isaiah saw (John 12:39-41)!

 

C. The Holy Spirit

 

      1.   When Jesus was baptized, the Holy Spirit took on the form of a dove, and landed on Jesus.

Luke 3:22 - The Holy Spirit descended upon Jesus in bodily form / shape [5A] like a dove.


Dennis Hinks © 2006

060218

 

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